1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of wire conveyor belts.
2. Description of the Background Art
Flat wire conveyor belts are well-known in the art, one example of which is described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,872,023 to Bechtel, Jr. Such belts include a plurality of tractive wickets (sometimes referred to in the prior art as "pickets") which are links formed to provide an array of longitudinally-extending tractive members having slots therethrough. Cross rods extend through the slots for slidably interconnecting the wickets. The previously-mentioned Bechtel, Jr. patent describes placement of slots in the wire to allow the belt to operate around right or left-hand course turns.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,261,451 to Roinestad discloses utilization of a tapered pin slot on flat wire conveyor belts. The taper allows the rod to move freely when the belt collapses in a turn.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,846,339 to Roinestad discloses belts with wickets of differing pitch to transfer belt tension or load, so as to decrease flexure and resultant fatigue failure of the wickets.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,271,491 to Irwin discloses utilization of wicket links having different pitch for providing a bi-directional, short radius turn, conveyor belt.
There remains a need in the art for improvements in wire conveyor belts.